CHIEFS REPORTEDLY CLOSE TO HIRING REID

Former Eagles coach cancels other interviews; status of Kansas City GM Pioli up in air

At 2-14, the Chiefs had the worst record in the NFL last year. But the expectation is that things will improve rapidly if they hire Andy Reid as their head coach.

“I think this team all of a sudden has a chance to be pretty good,” former Chiefs coach Herm Edwards said. “He fits with the Chiefs. He coached at Missouri. He was in the Midwest. The fans will enjoy him and they’ll enjoy his offense. He’s got a plan. He’s been in playoff games, he’s been in Super Bowls. He’s done it all. His legacy is one that he knows how to win games.”

The Chiefs were on the verge of bringing in Reid, 54, fired Monday after 14 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, as their next head coach, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

Talks between the Chiefs and Reid were going well enough that Reid was not planning to take a scheduled visit to Arizona, or meet with the Chargers about their head coaching job.

The Chiefs didn’t acknowledge they had even talked with Reid, much less that they were close to hiring him to replace Romeo Crennel, who was fired Monday after going 4-15 as head coach in Kansas City. There was also no indication of the fate of General Manager Scott Pioli.

Pioli was involved in the Chiefs’ nine-hour interview with Reid in the Philadelphia area on Wednesday. But Reid may prefer to work with a different general manager.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that Reid would bring former Browns General Manager Tom Heckert along with him to replace Pioli. After the Browns fired Heckert on Monday, he told the Plain Dealer that, “It would be outstanding to work with (Reid) again.” Before becoming the general manger of the Browns in 2010, Heckert had worked with Reid in Philadelphia for nine years.

But ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that his sources insist Reid still wants to gauge whether John Dorsey, the Packers’ director of operations, would consider becoming the Chiefs’ next GM.

Bears to interview Arians

The Colts said Arians had been granted permission to speak with the Chicago Bears about their head coaching vacancy, though it’s unclear when the interview will take place because Indy (11-5) will face AFC North champion Baltimore (10-6) in a wild-card round game Sunday.

Around the league

With Reid no longer in the picture, the Arizona Cardinals have received permission to interview Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Todd Haley for their head coaching job, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

• The Eagles will interview Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy.

• Bill O’Brien is staying at Penn State. O’Brien’s agent, Joseph Linta, said that the Nittany Lions’ head coach garnered interest from several NFL teams for vacant jobs at the next level.

• The Jets will start conducting interviews today for their general manager vacancy, four days after owner Woody Johnson fired Mike Tannenbaum.